New Orleans hospitality workers call for emergency sick pay, health care and virus testing
About a dozen protesters with the New Orleans Hospitality Workers' Alliance walked into city hall Monday afternoon chanting and carrying signs as Mayor LaToya Cantrell and other officials were preparing to update the public on the threat of Coronavirus.
“If we don’t have sick leave and we don’t have health care we get all of the customers sick and our coworkers sick,” said Meg Maloney with the group made of servers, cooks, bartenders and other hospitality workers.
In front of the mayor, several council members and other emergency officials Maloney and other workers demanded the city enact emergency sick pay, health care and free testing.
“They say that their hands are tied, they say they don’t have funding but when it comes to cops, when it comes to anything they deem appropriate they jump and put millions of dollars wherever they want,” said Ashlee Pintos, another worker with the group.
In what was at times a heated exchange, Cantrell said there is little she can do because these are private businesses.
